Madagascar travel?

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Madagascar travel?

Postby advntrjnky » Sun Jul 08, 2012 8:20 pm

anybody traveled in Madagascar lately?

I'll be going back to the NW coast of Madgascar soon (near Antsohihy) and was wondering if it is better to fly into Tana and travel north or enter Nosy Be and head South? Distance is shorter coming from Nosy Be, but that doesn't mean anything in Madagascar.

thanks!
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby advntrjnky » Mon Jul 09, 2012 10:00 pm

I should clarify that I am familar with how to travel within Madgascar and am more wondering which Port of Entry/ Customs is currently easier too clear, which route has the least hassling Gendarme stops, best road conditions....etc. I was last in country at the height of the Coup in '09 and travel at that time was completely different than even a few months before.

thanks
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby Osiris » Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:53 am

I know it's not the response you're looking for, but wouldn't Lonely Planet or Wikitravel have that type of info? It might not be the most up to date, but I'd think it worth a look.
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby advntrjnky » Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:53 pm

yeah, I was just checking to see if anyone around here had some current first hand info they could share.....IMHO best to be forewarned and prepared than be required to out-think a situation. I speak Malagasy so usually fair pretty good in situations that would normally get foreigners mired down. Thanks for your response!

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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby Kurt » Wed Jul 11, 2012 6:31 pm

Sorry but it appears our members know little about Madagascar but it would be great if you could post some stuff about it when you get back.
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby Osiris » Thu Jul 12, 2012 3:20 am

It would be nice to have someone with recent firsthand experience there posting on this board.The more direct regional experience, the better I suppose.
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby advntrjnky » Thu Jul 12, 2012 11:18 pm

If everything works out well it'll be late Sept. or early Oct. when I go. I'll definitely post while I'm there with current info, but if anyone wants any info about Madagascar I'm pretty well versed on the North/ Northwest, spent a little time in the Tana area, and a short excursion to the South near Berenty Reserve.

some fun things Americans aren't used too is that on Air Mad internal flights you can fly with all manner of edged weapons and Gendarmes travel for free on Taxi buses. they have no sense of proper weapon handling, so, I made sure that I never sat in front of one because the muzzle of their AKs always end up pointed at the back of the person in front of them.

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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby Osiris » Fri Jul 13, 2012 5:15 am

If you want to post some pics and a quick write up of the country as you know it now that would be cool.
Something kinda like this: http://cafe.comebackalive.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=55573
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby vagabond » Sat Jul 14, 2012 5:54 pm

Kurt wrote:Sorry but it appears our members know little about Madagascar but it would be great if you could post some stuff about it when you get back.


Seconded.
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby advntrjnky » Mon Jul 23, 2012 12:40 am

Looks like some people still aren't happy with the outcome of the '09 Coup......if they ever get around to having elections I really want to be there for them.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/mutinous-soldiers-in-madagascar-take-over-military-base-near-airport-shoot-negotiator/2012/07/22/gJQA54AH2W_story.html

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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby ktrout » Sat Jul 28, 2012 5:03 am

I just read in Discover magazine about a woman who went into the jungle there to try to convince the locals to conserve the Lemur population. I guess she came back with a list of half a dozen pretty nasty parasites. Ringworm, malaria ....
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby vagabond » Sat Jul 28, 2012 5:48 am

ktrout wrote:I just read in Discover magazine about a woman who went into the jungle there to try to convince the locals to conserve the Lemur population. I guess she came back with a list of half a dozen pretty nasty parasites. Ringworm, malaria ....


She* "discovered" jungles are places to pick up diseases. I'll be here all week.

*edit...blame the booze
Last edited by vagabond on Sat Jul 28, 2012 6:30 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby Sri Lanky » Sat Jul 28, 2012 6:09 am

Met a young couple from Madagascar in Mae Sariang last year. What is it with certain ethnicities and that earthy red skin tone? The Surinamese also come to mind. Anyways,they were beautiful and I think the guy was more so. It's interesting too how certain ethnic groups have very little sexual dichotomy.

They were very well educated and I suppose the Madagascar of today is very different from the days of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranavalona_I
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby qygorra » Fri Oct 19, 2012 7:33 pm

I am actually just back from a trip in Madagascar, but only on the South Coast, in Toliara ( been around, but as I had quite a lot of work related problems to sort out, I haven't been running around as much as I wanted ! ).

Nice place, with a few things to do and see around, if you re interested give me a shout and I will post you what I know about the place !
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Re: Madagascar travel?

Postby qygorra » Fri Nov 02, 2012 2:08 am

Aouch, sorry, misread your post.

Honestly, for the customs and entry, entering from Toliara is quite easy.. I think I still have the contact details the High Commissionner responsible for all the visas and port entry/clearances in Toliara (well, I had to see him 4 times in a week to update visas, so it was kind of " wey hey, how are u doin today ").

Will check it and pm if I can find it...(retarded VS laptop part II ^^ )
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